Loki
In the beginning Loki was merely a personification of fire and the hearth. As the stories went on he was a god, and then a god and a devil. Loki is the seductively handsome Norse god of mischief and chaos. He is the son of two giants, and some times referred to as the brother of Odin. He becomes harbinger of Ragnarök and the father of the three chaos monster; Fenris, Jörmungandr and Hel. Odin! Dost Thou Remember when we in early days Blended our blood together? When to taste beer Thou did'st constantly refuse Unless to both 'twas offered? -Sæmund's Edda, Thorpe's translation It is said that when the brick mason; builder of Asgard's wall demanded an unreasonably high price for his work, it was Loki's idea to give him six months to build the wall. Thinking that surely the man would fail, and that Loki's plan was infallible the gods all agreed. Except Freya who was to be the price. When the brick mason and his stallion Svadilfari had made much progress on the wall before his time expired the gods all turned on Loki, threatening him with death if he didn't find away to make sure the wall wasn't finished with in the sixth month. Fearing for his life Loki took the form of a young mare and enticed Svadilfari away from his master causing mason to loose the bet. Also through the union of Loki and Svadilfari brought Odin his eight legged steed Sleipnir. Some time after the wall was built Loki, discontent with his faithful wife Sigyn, went to Jotunheim where he wooed the giantess Angrboda. In the Time they spent together Angrboda gave birth to three children as terrible as their father. The first the wolf Fenris who's mouth reached from the heavens to the earth, the second jörmungandr, the serpent that encircled the earth, and the third was the goddess Hel, who was given dominion over Nilfheim. In the tail of the 'The Binding of Fenris' we find that the eldest son of Loki and Angrboda was the wolf which ate Tyr's hand. It was Loki who tricked the the two Dwarf son's of Ivaldi and the Dwarfs Brokk and Eitri to work against one another to create the gods well known weapons and mounts. Loki was also responsible for the theft of Indun's apples. He also appears beside Thor during many of his outings to Jotunheim, he even shared Thor's shame when Thor dressed as Freya to retrieve his hammer Mjolnir. (Loki dressed as a nurse made, but one can hardly call Loki in shame of dressing as a woman.) It was Loki who talked Hodur into throwing the mistletoe branch at his Twin Brother Balder. After the death of Balder Ægir god of the sea invited all of the gods to his home so as they may forget their woes, it is hear that Loki commits his final offense before his binding. Here he insults Bragi calling him a coward and a poor man. He then goes on to insult Indun saying that she was adulterous. In fact he charges most goddess as being unfaithful to their mates. Including Odin's own wife Frigg, he charges Freya and Freyr with having an affair. His last jibe of the evening before being chased away by Thor was to Sif in which he confessed to have shared a bed with her. It was not long after this night that Loki was sought out by the gods and chained to a rock by the entrails of his son Narve who had been torn to pieces by his son Vali. The faithful Sigyn kept watch over her husband catching the poison from the serpent that Skadi placed over Loki's head. He was chained to the Stone until the day of Ragnarok the end of the gods. Popular Culture The Mask It was said Loki was a shape shifter and disgraced his family with his mischiefs. It was said he created a mask whose wearer would be endowed with powers of Loki himself (Son of the Mask). In The Mask, Loki was said to have owned and created a mystical mask which allowed the wearer to be ridded of all inhibitions, giving the wearer an alternate personality. Meaning, the wearer could do or be anything he would never do normally, like Stanley Ipkiss. Loki (Comic) Loki also appears in Marvel Universe comics as a supervillain with both his own series, and various times in the Thor series. In the series after slaying the giant Laufey, Odin found a small Asgardian-sized child hidden within the primary stronghold of the Frost Giants. The child was Loki, and Laufey kept him hidden from his people due to his shame over his son's small size. Odin took the boy because he showed strength when Odin slew his father in combat and raised him as his son alongside his biological son Thor. External Links References Category:Æsir Category:Norse gods Category:Trickster Gods